Common Search Strategies Research Articles

Yoga as a Potential Tool for Filling Implementation Gap in Promoting Better Mental Health in Geriatric Age Group at Global Level: A Scoping Review

This scoping review aims to review the effectiveness of yoga as a complementary intervention for improving mental health outcomes in the geriatric population globally. Yoga is practiced by millions worldwide. Since practitioners of yoga claim to have calmer minds and better psychological and physical health, this topic needs to be reviewed at length. There is a considerable treatment gap worldwide in treating mental disorders, especially in old age, and there is a shortage of low-cost, feasible, and acceptable preventive or treatment options available to tackle mental ailments for the senior population at large. Yoga can potentially act as a low-cost intervention for promoting better mental health. The article reviews yoga as an implementation strategy for meeting this global challenge. Information related to “Yoga and Mental Health” and “Yoga and old age” was searched in two databases, i.e., PubMed and Google Scholar, using a standard search strategy and search strings. Only the articles published in the English language were selected. A standard data extraction form was used to extract and tabulate the data. A comprehensive search strategy (annexed) yielded only two papers as the work on implementation research on mental health is dismal. Both were excluded as the papers did not belong to implementation research. However, for the sake of narrative review, a common search strategy in PubMed included key terms such as “yoga and aging and mental health” and yielded 54 results out of which 7 were included for this scoping review. Comprehensive advanced search from Google Scholar revealed 4850 articles. Screening found 1 implementation research abstract only and two clinical trials. None was included as they did not belong to implementation research. Considering the potential that yoga has as a preventive and therapeutic option, scientific work on implementation research involving mental health and yoga is required. Considering the bludgeoning amount of work done on the subject, there is a possibility of including the same in mainstream medicine as a low-cost preventive or therapeutic option to address the implementation gap in mental health, especially for the senior age group.

Both the transcriptional activator, Bcd, and repressor, Cic, form small mobile oligomeric clusters

Transcription factors play an essential role in pattern formation during early embryo development, generating a strikingly fast and precise transcriptional response that results in sharp gene expression boundaries. To characterize the steps leading up to transcription, we performed a side-by-side comparison of the nuclear dynamics of two morphogens, a transcriptional activator, Bicoid (Bcd), and a transcriptional repressor, Capicua (Cic), both involved in body patterning along the anterior-posterior axis of the early Drosophila embryo. We used a combination of fluorescence recovery after photobleaching, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, and single-particle tracking to access a wide range of dynamical timescales. Despite their opposite effects on gene transcription, we find that Bcd and Cic have very similar nuclear dynamics, characterized by the coexistence of a freely diffusing monomer population with a number of oligomeric clusters, which range from low stoichiometry and high mobility clusters to larger, DNA-bound hubs. Our observations are consistent with the inclusion of both Bcd and Cic into transcriptional hubs or condensates, while putting constraints on the mechanism by which these form. These results fit in with the recent proposal that many transcription factors might share a common search strategy for target gene regulatory regions that makes use of their large unstructured regions, and may eventually help explain how the transcriptional response they elicit can be at the same time so fast and so precise.

Emotional and relational problems of adolescents with and without a migrant background in Europe: a systematic review.

Mental health of migrant adolescents is a topic that has been widely studied in the past decades. Emotional and behavioural problems are amongst the most explored areas; however, little attention has been paid to the relational sphere, which represents another key aspect of mental health and is paramount during adolescence. This systematic review analysed the available evidence on emotional and relational problems comparing adolescents with and without a migrant background in Europe between 2010 and 2021. The search was conducted in four databases using a common search strategy composed of terms addressing adolescence, migrant population, and emotional and relational problems. Three rounds of screening produced 36 eligible studies. Factors affecting both types of problems were identified and categorised using thematic synthesis, dividing them into factors affecting both types of problems jointly or separately and analysing them according to three systemic levels affecting the adolescents' lives (intrapersonal, interpersonal and external). Critical analysis of the results pointed to mixed findings, with a mild tendency in migrant-background adolescents to portray more emotional problems than their native peers and a stronger tendency for relational problems in the same direction. Several limitations were identified and, along with the conclusions, point to suggestions for future research focusing on studying relational problems as a key component of mental health and its link to emotional problems. Further suggestions entail designing studies that target adolescents with different migrant-background profiles and cultural origins to establish differences between them and identify additional factors affecting emotional and relational problems during the pre-migration and transit phases of the migratory journey to help prevent the onset of these problems.

Review of direct impact health indicators of COVID-19 in the scientific literature published between January 2020 and June 2021

Abstract Background The Joint Action Population Health Information Research Infrastructure (PHIRI) seeks to create infrastructures to generate quality data on the COVID-19 pandemic between European countries. The aim of this study is to present a synthesis of health indicators used to evaluate the direct impact of COVID-19 Methods Scoping review using a common search strategy in Pubmed, Embase and WHO Covid-19 databases. Health indicators of direct impact of COVID-19 were obtained from observational studies in the general population, hospitals and long-term care facilities from papers published worldwide in English between 01/01/2020 and 06/31/2021. Titles and abstracts were screened first by 15 reviewers using the Rayyan tool. Any discrepancies were solved by agreement between reviewers. Then, articles containing indicators of direct impact were selected in a full-text reading phase. Of them, a random sample of 35 was drawn and their indicators were described. Results After eliminating 262 duplicates 3891 records were reviewed. Screening discarded 3171 abstracts. Of 720 articles sought for retrieval, 445 met inclusion criteria for indicators extraction. In a sample of 35 papers (8.1%), 116 direct impact indicators of COVID-19 were identified. 28 morbidity indicators were found, classified as indicators of prevalence (n = 15), incidence (6), transmissibility (4) and underreported infection (4); 32 of mortality (mortality rate, 9; case fatality rate, 17; time to death, 2); and 54 for severity (complications, 27; mechanical ventilation, 12; hospitalization, 8; requiring ICU admission, 1; time from hospitalization to ICU admission, 1). Two composite indicators of severity and mortality were also identified. Conclusions According to the scientific literature, a wide variety of health indicators has been used to measure the direct impact of COVID-19. The systematization of indicators used in the current COVID-19 pandemic could help for future health crises management.

Generalized error path algorithm

Model selection with cross validation (CV) is very popular in machine learning. However, CV with grid and other common search strategies cannot guarantee to find the model with minimum CV error, which is often the ultimate goal of model selection. Recently, various solution path algorithms have been proposed for several important learning algorithms including support vector classification, Lasso, and so on. However, they still do not guarantee to find the model with minimum CV error. In this paper, we first show that the solution paths produced by various algorithms have the property of piecewise linearity. Then, we prove that a large class of error (or loss) functions are piecewise constant, linear, or quadratic w.r.t. the regularization parameter, based on the solution path. Finally, we propose a new generalized error path algorithm (GEP), and prove that it will find the model with minimum CV error in a finite number of steps for the entire range of the regularization parameter. The experimental results on a variety of datasets not only confirm our theoretical findings, but also show that the best model with our GEP has better generalization error on the test data, compared to the grid search, manual search, and random search.

Some new perspectives for solving 0–1 integer programming problems using Balas method

Egon Balas’s additive algorithm, also known as implicit enumeration, is a technique that uses a branch-and-bound (B&B) approach to finding optimal solutions to 0–1 integer programming problems. Three common search strategies in B&B are depth-first search, breadth-first search and best-first search. The B&B approach generates a list of pending nodes to be evaluated and storage of these nodes becomes a memory issue for larger problems. In this paper, we propose a simple bookkeeping method that tracks the state of the problem using a single array when performing a depth-first search, dramatically reducing memory requirements. The method also provides the ability to calculate, at any point of the search, the theoretical maximum number of remaining nodes to be evaluated. We note in this paper that when using the best-first search strategy, the first candidate solution found is the optimal solution.

PROTOCOL: Multiagency programmes with police as a partner for reducing radicalisation to violence.

Violent radicalisation is a complex problem, complicated by the lack of a clear terrorist profile and variation in the risk factors that predict violent extremism across individuals and groups (Campelo, Oppetit, Neau, Cohen, & Bronsard, 2018; Carlsson et al., 2020; Desmarais, Simons‐Rudolph, Brugh, Schilling, & Hoggan, 2017; Wolfowicz, Litmanovitz, Weisburd, & Hasisi, 2019). While models of understanding radicalisation vary (Borum, 2015; Christmann, 2012; Desmarais et al., 2017; Horgan, 2008; Koehler, 2017; Kruglanski, Belanger, & Gunaratna, 2019; Sarma, 2017), it is broadly defined as the process by which a person adopts extremist views and moves towards committing a violent act (Irwin, 2015; Jensen, Atwell Seate, & James, 2018). Radicalisation has been linked with individual and group engagement in terrorist attacks against innocent civilians (Wilner & Dubouloz, 2010), as well as individuals entering conflict zones to join formal extremist groups to engage in violent combat (Lindekilde, Bertelsen, & Stohl, 2016). As a result, radicalisation has become a key focus for counterterrorism and violence prevention interventions. The complex and varied nature of individuals' progression from radicalisation to violence presents challenges for designing and evaluating appropriate interventions and policy responses (Hafez & Mullins, 2015; Helmus et al., 2017; Horgan & Braddock, 2010; Horgan, 2008; Jensen et al., 2018; Kruglanski et al., 2019). This level of complexity has driven national counterterrorism policy agendas to adopt intersectoral and multiagency responses that aim to address various radicalisation processes and risks (Beutel & Weinberger, 2016). These multiagency responses often involve partnerships and collaborations between various different agencies and entities (Hardy, 2018), such as governmental agencies, private businesses, community organisations and service providers.

Online Information About Periviable Birth: Quality Assessment

BackgroundOver 20,000 parents in the United States face the challenge of participating in decisions about whether to use life support for their infants born on the cusp of viability every year. Clinicians must help families grasp complex medical information about their baby’s immediate prognosis as well as the risk for significant long-term morbidity. Patients faced with this decision want supplemental information and frequently seek medical information on the Internet. Empirical evidence about the quality of websites is lacking.ObjectiveWe sought to evaluate the quality of online information available about periviable birth and treatment options for infants born at the cusp of viability.MethodsWe read a counseling script to 20 pregnant participants that included information typically provided by perinatal and neonatal providers when periviable birth is imminent. The women were then asked to list terms they would use to search the Internet if they wanted additional information. Using these search terms, two reviewers evaluated the content of websites obtained via a Google search. We used two metrics to assess the quality of websites. The first was the DISCERN instrument, a validated questionnaire designed to assess the quality of patient-targeted health information for treatment choices. The second metric was the Essential Content Tool (ECT), a tool designed to address key components of counseling around periviable birth as outlined by professional organizations. DISCERN scores were classified as low quality if scores were 2, fair quality if scores were 3, and high quality if scores were 4 or higher. Scores of 6 or higher on the ECT were considered high quality. Interreviewer agreement was assessed by calculated kappa statistic.ResultsA total of 97 websites were reviewed. Over half (57/97, 59%) were for-profit sites, news stories, or personal blogs; 28% (27/97) were government or medical sites; and 13% (13/97) were nonprofit or advocacy sites. The majority of sites scored poorly in DISCERN questions designed to assess the reliability of information presented as well as data regarding treatment choices. Only 7% (7/97) of the websites were high quality as defined by the DISCERN tool. The majority of sites did not address the essential content defined by the ECT. Importantly, only 18% of websites (17/97) indicated that there are often a number of reasonable approaches to newborn care when faced with periviable birth. Agreement was strong, with kappa ranging from .72 to .91.ConclusionsMost information about periviable birth found on the Internet using common search strategies is of low quality. News stories highlighting positive outcomes are disproportionately represented. Few websites discuss comfort care or how treatment decisions impact quality of life.

The Impact of mHealth Interventions: Systematic Review of Systematic Reviews.

BackgroundMobile phone usage has been rapidly increasing worldwide. mHealth could efficiently deliver high-quality health care, but the evidence supporting its current effectiveness is still mixed.ObjectiveWe performed a systematic review of systematic reviews to assess the impact or effectiveness of mobile health (mHealth) interventions in different health conditions and in the processes of health care service delivery.MethodsWe used a common search strategy of five major scientific databases, restricting the search by publication date, language, and parameters in methodology and content. Methodological quality was evaluated using the Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR) checklist.ResultsThe searches resulted in a total of 10,689 articles. Of these, 23 systematic reviews (371 studies; more than 79,665 patients) were included. Seventeen reviews included studies performed in low- and middle-income countries. The studies used diverse mHealth interventions, most frequently text messaging (short message service, SMS) applied to different purposes (reminder, alert, education, motivation, prevention). Ten reviews were rated as low quality (AMSTAR score 0-4), seven were rated as moderate quality (AMSTAR score 5-8), and six were categorized as high quality (AMSTAR score 9-11). A beneficial impact of mHealth was observed in chronic disease management, showing improvement in symptoms and peak flow variability in asthma patients, reducing hospitalizations and improving forced expiratory volume in 1 second; improving chronic pulmonary diseases symptoms; improving heart failure symptoms, reducing deaths and hospitalization; improving glycemic control in diabetes patients; improving blood pressure in hypertensive patients; and reducing weight in overweight and obese patients. Studies also showed a positive impact of SMS reminders in improving attendance rates, with a similar impact to phone call reminders at reduced cost, and improved adherence to tuberculosis and human immunodeficiency virus therapy in some scenarios, with evidence of decrease of viral load.ConclusionsAlthough mHealth is growing in popularity, the evidence for efficacy is still limited. In general, the methodological quality of the studies included in the systematic reviews is low. For some fields, its impact is not evident, the results are mixed, or no long-term studies exist. Exceptions include the moderate quality evidence of improvement in asthma patients, attendance rates, and increased smoking abstinence rates. Most studies were performed in high-income countries, implying that mHealth is still at an early stage of development in low-income countries.

The Contribution of National Spontaneous Reporting Systems to Detect Signals of Torsadogenicity: Issues Emerging from the ARITMO Project.

IntroductionSpontaneous reporting systems (SRSs) are pivotal for signal detection, especially for rare events with a high drug-attributable component, such as torsade de pointes (TdP). Use of different national SRSs is rarely attempted because of inherent difficulties, but should be considered on the assumption that rare events are diluted in international databases.ObjectiveThe aim was to describe TdP-related events associated with antipsychotics, H1-antihistamines and anti-infectives in three national SRSs (in Italy, Germany and France) and highlight potential signals of torsadogenicity through a combined literature evaluation.MethodsA common search strategy was applied to extract TdP-related events: (1) TdP, (2) QT interval abnormalities, (3) ventricular fibrillation/tachycardia, and (4) sudden cardiac death. Signals of disproportionate reporting (SDRs) were calculated for TdP + QT interval abnormalities and defined by a lower limit of the 95 % confidence interval of the reporting odds ratio (ROR) >1. Among SDRs with at least three cases without concomitant pro-arrhythmic drugs, we defined potential new signal of torsadogenicity as drugs with no published evidence from (a) the crediblemeds® website (http://www.crediblemeds.com, as of November 1st, 2014); (b) studies on the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS); and (c) safety trials or pharmaco-epidemiological studies (as of December 16th, 2014).ResultsOverall, 3505 cases were retrieved (1372, 1468, and 801 for France, Germany and Italy, respectively). Antipsychotics were mainly recorded in Germany (792 cases), whereas antibiotics peaked at 515 and 491 (France and Italy, respectively). Forty-one drugs met criteria for SDRs in at least one single source, of which 31 were detected only from one single SRS: 18, ten and three (French, German and Italian SRS, respectively). By contrast, only five SDRs were detected in all national data sources (amisulpride, aripiprazole, haloperidol, olanzapine, risperidone). Overall, five potential new signals of torsadogenicity were identified: flupentixol, ganciclovir, levocetirizine, oxatomide and tiapride.ConclusionsWe found differences across and within national SRSs in the reporting of drug-induced TdP, which finally resulted in five potential new signals of torsadogenicity. These findings warrant targeted pharmacovigilance studies to formally assess the existence of actual drug–event associations.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s40264-015-0353-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Clinical Governance Infrastructures and Relational Mechanisms of Control in Healthcare Organizations

This review paper aims to identify and discuss the dominant themes surrounding the governance initiatives in the context of medical markets relying on the two most common search strategies, namely the keyword search technique and the ancestry approach. In an in-depth examination of the recently published research in the field we uncover an emergent decoupling between the governance initiatives formulated at the macro- and micro-levels in today’s institutions of healthcare provision. The macro-level initiatives are associated with clinical governance infrastructures directed towards the attainment of medical performance targets, whereas the micro-level endeavors refer to relational governance mechanisms for overseeing the relationship between the patient and the physician. Acknowledging the importance of monitoring micro-level interactions that may contribute to the achievement of macro-level objectives, a more comprehensive integration of relational governance devices under the broader system of clinical governance is advocated in this paper with the purpose of enhancing the effectiveness of healthcare organizations.

Protocol for systematic reviews of determinants/correlates of obesity-related dietary and physical activity behaviors in young children (preschool 0 to 6 years): evidence mapping and syntheses

BackgroundThe aim of these reviews is to inform the design and content of interventions to reduce obesity in young children. The behaviors that are associated with obesity/overweight have been studied extensively; however, the factors associated with these behaviors in young children (0 to 6 years) have not been systematically reviewed. Over the past few years the focus of obesity prevention has shifted to preschool children because of the high prevalence of obesity at school entry and recognition that habits formed in early life could track into adulthood. In order to develop effective interventions and change behavior, it is important to understand the factors that are associated with those behaviors. For example, we need to understand whether it would be more important to target the family, childcare settings or the wider environment and identify the most effective way of changing these energy balance related behaviors.Methods/DesignQuantitative (intervention and observational) and qualitative literature on determinants/correlates of fruit and vegetable intake, sugar sweetened beverage and other unhealthy diet intake, and physical activity and sedentary behaviors in young children will be systematically identified, mapped and reviewed. A common search strategy (no language or period restrictions) will be used to identify papers from eight electronic databases and this will be supplemented by hand-searching. Next, studies in developed countries that examine the factors associated with these behaviors in children aged 0 to 6 years (at baseline) will be screened and mapped descriptively followed by in-depth data extraction, quality assessment and synthesis. Data from quantitative studies will be summarized using either forest plots or harvest plots and narrative synthesis, and qualitative studies using thematic analysis. Qualitative evidence will be integrated with the quantitative evidence, using a parallel synthesis approach, to provide a deeper understanding of effective strategies to influence these energy balance related behaviors.DiscussionIn addition to updating and mapping current research, these reviews will be the first to comprehensively synthesize and integrate both the quantitative and qualitative evidence pertaining to determinants/correlates/barriers/facilitators of obesity related behaviors in this young age group (0 to 6 years) with the aim of informing future interventions.Trial registrationInternational Prospective Register for Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) Registration number: CRD42012002881

Transitions in search tactics during the Web‐based search process

AbstractAlthough many studies have identified search tactics, few studies have explored tactic transitions. This study investigated the transitions of search tactics during the Web‐based search process. Bringing their own 60 search tasks, 31 participants, representing the general public with different demographic characteristics, participated in the study. Data collected from search logs and verbal protocols were analyzed by applying both qualitative and quantitative methods. The findings of this study show that participants exhibited some unique Web search tactics. They overwhelmingly employed accessing and evaluating tactics; they used fewer tactics related to modifying search statements, monitoring the search process, organizing search results, and learning system features. The contributing factors behind applying most and least frequently employed search tactics are in relation to users' efforts, trust in information retrieval (IR) systems, preference, experience, and knowledge as well as limitation of the system design. A matrix of search‐tactic transitions was created to show the probabilities of transitions from one tactic to another. By applying fifth‐order Markov chain, the results also presented the most common search strategies representing patterns of tactic transition occurring at the beginning, middle, and ending phases within one search session. The results of this study generated detailed and useful guidance for IR system design to support the most frequently applied tactics and transitions, to reduce unnecessary transitions, and support transitions at different phases.

Can the government really help? Online information for women experiencing violence

Abstract Domestic violence against women is a significant social and public health problem that requires a varied social service response for abused women and their children. Increasingly, this service response includes online sources and resources. Using content analysis methods, we examined the Canadian provincial E-Government response to providing information to women exposed to domestic violence. Our overarching question was “if an abused woman went to her province’s government website for information and help and used common search strategies, what would she find?” Our results provide evidence regarding not only how this key social service information is currently provided on provincial government websites, but also how, from the user’s perspective, these services could be improved. More broadly, however, these results – when set in the context of other responses to violence against women from government and non-government service providers at multiple levels – provide an opportunity to consider how the information landscape is evolving in the context of online tools, and whether this evolution (planned or serendipitous) is happening in a way that will ultimately benefit women exposed to violence.

Using the Internet to search for cancer clinical trials: A comparative audit of clinical trial search tools

Advancing the clinical trial research process to improve cancer treatment necessitates helping people with cancer identify and enroll in studies, and researchers are using the power of the Internet to facilitate this process. This study used a content analysis of online cancer clinical trial search tools to understand what people with cancer might encounter. The content analysis revealed that clinical trial search tools were easy to identify using a popular search engine, but their functionality and content varied greatly. Most required that users be fairly knowledgeable about their medical condition and sophisticated in their web navigation skills. The ability to search by a specific health condition or type of cancer was the most common search strategy. The more complex tools required that users input detailed information about their personal medical history and have knowledge of specific clinical trial terminology. Search tools, however, only occasionally advised users to consult their doctors regarding clinical trial decision-making. This, along with the complexity of the tools suggests that online search tools may not adequately facilitate the clinical trial recruitment process. Findings from this analysis can be used as a framework from which to systematically examine actual consumer experience with online clinical trial search tools.

Contemporary Information Search Strategies of Destination-Naïve International Vacationers

An information search strategy refers to the combination of information sources utilized by a tourist when planning travel. This study describes the common information search strategies utilized by a group of destination-naïve international vacation tourists. Five hundred twenty-eight first-time vacation visitors to New Zealand were interviewed within their first 24 hours of arrival in the country and metric measures taken of their use of six information sources in the planning of their vacations. Six common search strategies are identified, together with their demographic and behavioral correlates—a low search strategy, four moderate search strategies—“guidebook brochure agent,” “guidebook friends,” “friends,” “net guidebook”—and a high search strategy, “friends net.”

A Geosynchronous Orbit Search Strategy

Since more than 10 years there is evidence that small-size space debris is accumulating in the geosynchronous orbit (GEO), probably as the result of breakups. Two break-ups have been reported in GEO. The 1978 break-up of an EKRAN 2 satellite, SSN 10365, was identified in 1992, and in 1992 a Titan 3C Transtage, SSN 3432, break-up produced at least twenty observable pieces. Subsequently several nations performed optical surveys of the GEO region in the form of independent observation campaigns. Such surveys suffer from the fact that the field of view of optical telescopes is small compared with the total area covered by the GEO ring. As a consequence only a small volume of the orbital element-magnitude-space is covered by each individual survey. Results from these surveys are thus affected by observational biases and therefore difficult to compare. This paper describes the development of a common search strategy to overcome these limitations. The strategy optimizes the sampling for objects in orbits similar to the orbits of the known GEO population but does not exclude the detection of objects with other orbital planes. A properly designed common search strategy clearly eases the comparison of results from different groups and the extrapolation from the sparse (biased) samples to the entire GEO environment.